Sue Bird Top 10: Games

All week long, StormBasketball.com will count down Sue Bird Top 10s, from her best photos to her best games, as part of our look back at her decade in Seattle. The celebration culminates with Saturday's game against the Atlanta Dream (7:00 p.m., )Arrive early to get your limited-edition Sue Bird Decade Bobblehead while supplies last

Today, it's the best games of Bird's career.

10

Sept. 2, 2008 at Atlanta
There was relatively little on the line in a game against the lowly expansion Dream. The Storm won comfortably by 14 points, thanks largely to Bird's performance. She contributed in every facet of the game, scoring a team-high 21 points, handing out nine assists, grabbing five rebounds and coming up with five steals. It's the only 4x5 (at least five in four categories) game of Bird's career.

9

Sept. 19, 2008 at Los Angeles
With Lauren Jackson sidelined, Bird turned scorer late in the 2008 season. This was her highest scoring outing ever in the playoffs, as she put up 23 points in Game 1 of the Storm's series with the Sparks on strong 9-of-15 shooting. Bird got little help from her teammates, however, in a 77-69 loss.

8

June 21, 2009 at Phoenix
Bird was key as the Storm picked up an impressive road win early in the season against the rival Mercury. She was in full command of the offense as the Storm scored 34 points in the first quarter and shot better than 50 percent from the field. Bird scored 21 points, making her one of three Storm players with at least 20, and handed out nine assists.

7

July 30, 2011 at Tulsa
Bird nearly reached the 30-point mark for just the second time in her career late last month in Tulsa. She settled for 29 points on 8-of-14 shooting as well as a perfect 10 of 10 at the free throw line - the most free throws she'd made since 2006.

6

July 3, 2003 vs. Washington
Bird helped Storm fans celebrate the Fourth of July a night early with offensive fireworks - the first 20-10 outing of her career. Bird scored 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting as the Storm knocked off the Mystics 76-72 at KeyArena.

5

Sept. 5, 2010 at Phoenix
In Game 2 of last year's Western Conference Finals, Bird had 16 points, eight assists and five rebounds, but it's not the numbers that mattered from the performance. All that will be remembered was Bird's game-winning three-pointer in the closing seconds. She's likely to point out the saving block on Temeka Johnson at the end of the floor, appreciating the rare chance to get credited for a block.

4

Sept. 8, 2004 vs. Detroit
The Storm easily knocked off the defending WNBA champions at KeyArena to snap a three-game losing streak. Bird was the catalyst, scoring 19 of her 23 points after halftime. She was a super-efficient 8-of-9 from the field and handed out eight assists in the win.

3

June 18, 2010 at New York
In the game that kicked off the longest winning streak in franchise history, Bird was responsible for bringing the Storm back from a second-half deficit. Bird had 13 of the Storm's 30 fourth-quarter points, giving her 22 for the night. She added 10 assists for the second 20-10 game she's ever had.

2

Oct. 5, 2004 vs. Sacramento
A day after undergoing surgery to reset her broken nose, Bird not only played but dominated as the Storm advanced to the WNBA Finals for the first time in franchise history. She set a league playoff record by handing out 14 assists, many of them in the midst of a 20-0 run that broke the game open and sent the Monarchs packing.

1

Aug. 9, 2002 vs. Portland
Kicking off the final weekend of the 2002 regular season, two I-5 rivals met with a playoff spot in the balance. A Storm loss would have eliminated the team from the playoff race. More than 12,000 turned out to watch Bird dominate the Fire. She scored a career-high 33 points on 10-of-18 shooting, handed out six assists and grabbed five rebounds. It was the first time in franchise history a Storm player had scored 30-plus, and it helped send the Storm to the postseason for the first time ever. That's why it was the best game of Bird's WNBA career.